This invention relates to the fields of computer systems and communications. More particularly, a system and methods are provided for automatically routing telephone calls or other electronic communications based on results of previous and/or concurrent routing.
In the servicing of telephone calls from people seeking a product (i.e., to buy) or a service (e.g., customer service), all calls directed to a particular telephone number are generally routed to one group or pool of agents. For the purpose of call routing, each agent is considered equally capable of servicing any call routed to that group. Therefore, calls may be routed in round-robin fashion (i.e., to the agent next in sequence), to the agent who has been idle for the longest period of time, or in some other manner designed to provide an even distribution of calls among the agents.
However, it is often the case that not all agents are equally qualified, skilled or capable of handling any call. For example, one agent may be particularly skilled at handling calls for customer assistance but is not very effective at selling a product, while another agent provides poor directory assistance but is very successful at selling a product. Even among calls of a particular type, such as for selling a product, one agent may be better qualified or more successful at selling electronics than home furnishings, while another sells more home furnishings than electronics and yet another is more effective at closing sales during calls matching other criteria.
Despite the manner in which call routing is usually handled, it is generally desirable to route calls in a manner that will promote the most success. Successful calls may be defined as calls that result in a product being sold or the efficient and accurate provision of some service (e.g., directory assistance, customer service).
Thus, there is a need for a more effective method of routing telephone calls from callers seeking or inquiring about some product or service. In particular, there is a need for a method of performing results-based routing, wherein a particular call is routed to an agent or other entity that has exhibited notable success in servicing that type of call (e.g., for a particular product or service). There is also a need for measuring agents' success and/or comparing one agent's efficiency or effectiveness against other agents, on a real-time and/or batch basis.